NAD: No cancellations resulting from Florence so far

Hurricane Florence is barreling down on the East Coast of the United States, hitting the Carolinas hard. It is also affecting other states along the Eastern Seaboard, and therefore is a concern for the tourism sector.

It is feared Hurricane Florence could put a damper on The Bahamas’ record arrivals year, but so far the Nassau Airport Development Company (NAD) has not experienced any airline cancellations, even from Charlotte, North Carolina, one of its most important hubs.

NAD Vice President of Marketing and Communications Jan Knowles explained that while there have not yet been cancellations, the company is keeping in close contact with its airline partners, just in case the situation changes.

Hurricane Florence is barreling down on the East Coast of the United States, hitting the Carolinas hard. It is also affecting other states along the Eastern Seaboard, and therefore is a concern for the tourism sector.

Some hotels said they have not experienced many cancellations due to the storm.

An Atlantis spokesperson said there has been a small decline in group business, but added that some groups have decided to arrive early, in order to avoid any delays to their events due to the storm.

“Very little impact overall,” the spokesperson said.

NAD recently reported a 6.2 percent increase in passengers for the fiscal year ending June 30. It noted that July’s results were even stronger, up seven percent over the previous year, with last month projecting similar results.

NAD expects these increases to continue into the end of 2018 and the beginning of 2019, but the two and a half months left in the hurricane season could pose a threat to these projections.

According to The Central Bank of The Bahamas, the U.S. segment of The Bahamas’ tourism product has grown by 8.5 percent this year, compared to the 1.4 percent increase recorded in 2017.